No, no – for the love of your holy god – NO!

The octuplets mom (and her spoats team of a family) are getting a reality TV show.

The Southern California woman who gave birth to the world’s longest-surviving set of octuplets has signed a deal to star in areality television series, her lawyer said Sunday.

Nadya Suleman, who gave birth to the six boys and two girls in January and also has six other children, agreed to be filmed for a proposed television show by 3Ball Productions, attorney Jeff Czech said.

Boy, you don’t think this was part of her master plan, do you?

I mean… she:

• was too busy to date because of here kids
• was too busy to manage a meaningful income so she needed to live off of her student loans
• couldn’t give enough time to her kids so had a large number of people help her… but most of them quit

All the while:

• she had publicist
• appeared in high profile interviews
• stated that she intended to PROFIT from her disabled child

So, she was too busy for life (except for gestating a few kids) but she isn’t too busy to have every aspect of her life documented for a TV. Seriously this just pisses me off beyond belief.

Manufacturing has slowly moved from the U.S. too all parts of the world.  Slowly Mexico, Asia and Europe began to pick up the production slack while the United States built the ultimate collection of intellectual property. As production left the country, it seems that major manufacturers started to make business decisions that maximized short term profits while ignoring long term stability and demand.

Welcome to GM.

General Motors, the worlds largest automaker, ignored consumer demand, production trends and economic realities for decades on end. Instead of providing products the consumer wanted, the company tried to tell people what to buy.  Forget cutting production cost by outsourcing, allow your labor cost to climb.  Ignore the realities of costs related to health care, borrow from the pension funds and short change the workers.

As the company was one of the largest in the world, it could do what it wanted and get away with it… as long as economic conditions were favorable. Who was going to stop them?  They had money, they had influence, and they had means. Who was going to stop them?

After the SUV craze of the 2000s came and went, GM started to lose money – and lose it fast. In 2008 General Motors last 31 Billion dollars.   As economic conditions continued to deteriorate throughout the year, pressure on the company began to grow.  Suddenly, the well ran dry and the debt overtook the company.  The giant automaker was on a lifeline when it turned to the government late in 2008 for financial assistance.  They claimed the loans would provide them with the necessary flexibility to weather the storm while rightsizing the company.

That didn’t happen.

So, as we sit here talking about trends in manufacturing, poor management and a product line that doesn’t meet consumer demands, we need to note GM is roughly 12 hours away from declaring bankruptcy.

Plans are being put in place to make the process “quick”, all the while giving the United States government upwards of 70% of control in the post-bankruptcy company.

Tomorrow the world will see President Barack Obama stating how this is an unfortunate day for the United States and the auto industry.  He’ll note how he and the administration do not wish to take over a company but wish to do what is best for the country.  Politicians will say how this will give the company the flexibility to compete in a new world economy…

Bunk.

What the world is witnessing is the failure the American auto industry.  Frankly, if the government were to stay out of the process, we would be witnessing Capitalism at work but we are not.  Instead, the world will watch the United States government reward a company for years of failure.

GM will have the the debt on the balance sheet removed, screwing the bond holders and debtors, and it will create a “lean” company putting all other automakers at a disadvantage.  Oh, yea, and the U.S. (and Canadian) taxpayers will have lost billions because the “loans” from last year will be wiped away.

Not only is tomorrow the death of the U.S. auto industry, it is truly the end of what was once considered free market capitalism.

And here we have the 4th demo from the Enhanced series.  This track makes me want to continue down the “Enhanced” series. As there were only expected to be 4 tracks with a general production theme, this one put a bump in that plan.  I think this has turned into something greater than the original plan.

I’m actually quite happy with the way this has turned out…what started as a mistake turned into something that really puts a smile on my face.  A few things to note – as always, this is not EQed/mastered.  There is a bit of time displacement on the crash symbols due to reverb but that will be fixed in the final recording.

So… that said…

Download Enhanced (track 4 demo)

or take a listen

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There was a time, way back when, hearing about an Orb show would have gotten me all hot and bothered.  I am still a HUGE fan of their work, but I fear nothing can live up to the lives shows of the past.  I recall seeing them play with Sun Electric years back… it was pure magic.

Well, The Orb is playing on a Wednesday evening (6/24) at a decent sized venue call the Bottom Lounge, but the place is more of a… um… hybrid club/bar/restaurant…  For example, when they played at the Metro or at The Riv the venue “fit”.  They places were dark, large enough for roughly 1000 people and seemed to be appropriate for the music.  Bottom Lounge seems more…  yuppie.

Don’t get me wrong, the place is really nice but I don’t know if it is the right location for the show. The cost isn’t an issue… or may it’s just that I am getting old, longing for the rave days of past…  who knows.

The news of out Korea (North and South) all points to North Korea testing more of their military toys.  Today it happens to be a new type of short-ranged missile. Reports of activity around ballistic missile sites are also coming in, and U.S. officials are warning that more nuke tests should be expected in the coming months.

All of this makes me ask – What’s up with North Korea?

Originally, I thought the nuke test took place to correspond with Memorial Day as NK executed other such tests on U.S. holidays in hopes of getting our attention.  This time, however, the level of continued military testing seems rather unusual.  Rather elevated.

Sure, it could be the North simply playing with their toys, but the timing and activity level is questionable.  All of this makes me ask what is North Korea trying to get from the world community?  As the country has virtually no energy resources, could they be trying to get more oil?  Do they want increased grain shipments?  In the past, the NK leadership would hit and “we need…” in exchange for an end to the testing.  No so this time.

Something doesn’t fit.

While the useless body called the U.N. sits around debating what type of draft resolution should be presented, North Korea goes on their way testing.  Even if sanctions are past against North Korea, what is the U.N. going to sanction?  The country already has nothing.  You can’t really take away something from a person who has nothing to begin with.  The only outcome of sanctions will be increased anger (or aggressive positioning) on the part of North Korea.

So, really, what’s the deal and how is the world going to react?

Well, I cannot sleep.  It is due to a number of things.  First off, the bar/club across the stress is VERY loud this evening.  At first it was the music, then it was the drunken bastards who decided “Hey, I need to smoke!” that poured out into the street to get their fix.

I hate the Chicago law that forbids smoking in bars/clubs/restaurants. Bottom line, if someone wants to some in a bar – they should be able to. If someone doesn’t like the fact that another is smoking in a bar, they can leave.  If the bar suffers a loss in business, they the can decide for themselves to be a non-smoking establishment.

Anyway..

I’m just sitting here thinking about life – life in general – and I can honestly say that it seems everyday provides more “surprises” than I would have ever thought. Frankly, it’s getting a bit old.  I’ve talked about this a few times in the past.  I’m not exactly sure what I thought life would be, but I know that it wasn’t this.

Which again leads me to what I want on my tombstone – if I have one – oh so many years in the future: “It wasn’t what I had expected.”

That will play with the minds of anyone who sees it.

I had a small bit of unexpected joy in my life today.  I got a rare demo copy of an equally rare ambient recording from the early 90’s that was produced by The Orb and Robert Fripp.  The final version of the album became none as FFWD but I have to say that I’m astonished by the demo. In a number of ways I find it to be superior to the final product.

If I remember correctly, 4 albums were expected to be produced but – for some reason – that never happened.  Such a shame.

On another note…

Has anyone had any experience with Ableton Live?

I’m looking for a multi-functional production tool – one that can be used in the studio as well as live/on the fly.  I’ve watched a number of videos/tutorials on the product and it looks like it may fit my needs, but every time I’ve sat down with the software I’ve felt very… well… It almost seems overly complicated.

For example, the second I sat down with ProTools, I felt comfortable and right at home.  Ableton, not so much.

So, does anyone have thoughts or experience with it?  If so, what do you think?

I’m going to try to go back to sleep, I have a feeling that it’s not going to go that well. Frankly, I’m a bit bummed right now.

An update on the General Motors situation:

General Motors Corp., the world’s largest automaker until its 77-year reign ended in 2008, plans to file for bankruptcy protection on June 1 and sell most of its assets to a new company, people familiar with the matter said.

GM’s path will be smoothed by an accord today giving some of its biggest bondholders an equity stake in the reorganized automaker. The U.S. Treasury is requiring that an unspecified percentage of debt holders accept the terms by 5 p.m. New York time on May 30, Detroit-based GM said in a regulatory filing.

If you doubt that GM has plans to go into bankruptcy, take a look at a comment by the Vice Chairman, Bob Lutz:

While not confirming GM’s intentions or a possible bankruptcy venue, said any court restructuring would be quick.

“We intend to get in and out very soon,” he said today at an Automotive Press Association luncheon in Detroit. “The U.S. government wants its money back, and our plan is to pay it back as quickly as possible. The U.S. government doesn’t want to own auto companies.”

If you didn’t have intentions of bankruptcy, why would you “intend to get in and out very soon”?

At this point, it’s just a matter of time…

This news surprises me a bit. 12 percent of homeowners with a mortgage are behind on their payments or in foreclosure, but guess what is the driving force?

Individuals with “prime” mortgages:

An industry report shows that a record 12 percent of homeowners with a mortgage are behind on their payments or in foreclosure as the housing crisis spreads to borrowers with good credit.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said Thursday the foreclosure rate on prime fixed-rate loans doubled in the last year, and now represents the largest share of new foreclosures. Nearly 6 percent of fixed-rate mortgages to borrowers with good credit were in the foreclosure process.

At the same time, almost half of all adjustable-rate loans to borrowers with shaky credit were past due or in foreclosure.

California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida accounted for 46 percent of new foreclosures in the country.

I guess the mantra of “only the foolish borrower” is at fault is out the window. Oh, and just so you know – this means 1 in 8 with mortgages are late/in foreclosure.

Let’s continue on the economic posting theme, shall we?

Nouriel Roubini, the economist who predicted the entire financial crisis several years ago, has come out and stated the economy may face even more difficulty next year.

I still expect that economic growth in the U.S. is going to be negative through Q4, and that we’ll see positive growth in Q1,” Roubini told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the Seoul Digital Forum.

“The U.S. recession is going to be U-shaped, lasting roughly 24 months,” he added. “Compared to the current consensus that says we are practically at the end of the recession … my view is: no, it’s going to last another six to nine months before it’s over.”
…

Roubini stood by a recent article in which he mentioned the possibility of a “perfect storm” in 2010.

“There is even a risk of a double dip, a W-shaped recession at the end of next year,” he said, a combination of rising oil prices, rising public debt and increases in real interest rates, rising concerns about inflation and the expiration of a number of tax cuts in the United States.

While I was originally skeptical of Roubini when I first read his work, I’ve since come to pay attention to his works. The price of oil – remember yesterday how Saudi Arabia thought the world could handle $80 oil… yea, not so much – the debt we’ve put on the books in trying to save the economy, and inflation may do use in when it comes to economic recovery.

Sure, anything can change. We are not even out of the woods with our current situation, so talking about what may come next is pure speculation, but I’ve had a lot of fear about energy, debt and inflation ever since the crisis started up. I’ve always thought it would come back to haunt us. I’m glad to see I’m not the only one.

The now weekly continued unemployment claims data is out and we are now up to 6.79M – a new record. Last week we were at 6.66 Million.

In the week ending May 23, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 623,000, a decrease of 13,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 636,000. The 4-week moving average was 626,750, a decrease of 3,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 629,750.
…
The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending May 16 was 6,788,000, an increase of 110,000 from the preceding week’s revised level of 6,678,000. The 4-week moving average was 6,608,250, an increase of 123,750 from the preceding week’s revised average of 6,484,500.

Two quick points:

1) The initial claims are down from 636K to 623K. What we are now have is a situation where people will try to make good news out of bad. No matter how you spin it, this is still BAD news.

2) The Continued Unemployment Claims record of 6.79 Million is a record based on volume, not percentage. The percentage continued unemployment claims records was 5.4% in the 1970’s, right now we are at 5.1%